Existing Home Sales Start New Year Flat: Ten-X

Existing home sales remained flat to begin 2017, as challenges crop up for the housing market in the year ahead, online marketplace Ten-X reported Tuesday.

January existing home sales will fall between seasonally adjusted annual rates of 5.32 million and 5.67 million, with a targeted number of 5.49 million, the Ten-X Residential Real Estate Nowcast found. That is in line with the figures reported for December and only 30,000 more homes than a year ago.

As for price, Ten-X forecasts major gains on the other hand. For January, Ten-X predicted a range from $221,272 to $244,564, with a target of $232,918, which would equate to an 8.9% year-over-year increase.

"The good news is that it looks like 2017 is getting off to a slightly better start than 2016 did, and existing home sales are staying at a healthy level," Ten-X Executive Vice President Rick Sharga said in a news release.

"But there are plenty of challenges facing the housing market this year, including incredibly low inventory of homes for sale, rising home prices and higher interest rates," Sharga added. "Still, we're cautiously optimistic that the market will improve slightly on a year-over-year basis."

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